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Journal of Undergraduate Research

Keywords

merocyanine 540, MC540, fluorescence, PS exposure, apoptotic cells

College

Life Sciences

Department

Physiology and Developmental Biology

Abstract

The purpose of my project was to further study cell membrane changes during apoptosis, or programmed cell death. This was an extension of the research being done by Dr. Bell and my fellow students on the susceptibility of cells to the enzyme secretory phospholipase A2 (sPLA2). This enzyme hydrolyzes cell membranes, but only those with certain lipid properties. In general, only cells that are dead, injured, or dying display significant susceptibility to sPLA2 while healthy cells resist hydrolysis (Nielson, 2000). We use fluorescent probes to study these membrane lipid properties and how they change as the cells undergo apoptosis. These membrane changes can have important pathological implications. In cancer, for example, cells which should have entered programmed cell death and been made susceptible to hydrolysis by sPLA2 have somehow become resistant. If we better understand the properties of membranes which induce susceptibility, we may be able to understand the resistance of cancer cells and find ways to treat it. Likewise, our research seeks to better understand some of the implications, including potential inflammatory responses, of chemotherapy designed to elicit apoptosis.

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